Today's blog post is a little different from our regular posts: we call these love letters - anonymously written about and/or dedicated to the people that come through our doors or have made an impact in our lives.

When you reflect on a choice you made that result in a positive consequence, it is very easy to think “oh that wasn’t so bad” or “why did I not do ‘xyz’ sooner?” The ‘xyz’ we refer to can be anything: taking on a new hobby, going back to school, adopting a lifestyle change; whatever the 'xyz' is, you will typically question “if I had made that change sooner, how much further ahead would I be now?” Whenever using hindsight, it is easy to re-evaluate past decisions and actions because the consequence has already been experienced. That is why hindsight is a luxury.

Many people who start training using CrossFit have never touched a barbell, let alone attempted an Olympic lift prior to entering a gym. There will be times when we have a new athlete learning to snatch but they are not quite getting it or the movement doesn’t yet feel natural; we will see them look around the class and a deflated expression will wash over their face because they think they are the only person in class who isn’t getting it. What they don’t realize is that every single person in that class has been through and experienced the exact same thing when they started.

Very seldom will we meet someone who is just innately gifted with the talent of the performing the more complex movements seamlessly. What your proficiency in these movements are when you start does not matter; what does matter is that you are consistent with your attendance. If you are consistent, we have no doubt you will become proficient.

At times athletes will assume that their coaches are just athletic, hopped on a bar one day and started executing flawless toe-to-bars or that they are naturally strong when they hit a new personal record (PR). That couldn’t be further from the truth. Your coaches are you, just 2, 3, 4, 5 years down the road. At the end of the day, there is never a perfect time to start, there will always be a reason for you to delay committing to a change. Know that the idea of getting started is more daunting than the actual act so if you know you are ready for a change, just do it.

When it comes to working out and working out hard, we’ve all, at one point in time or another, felt discomfort after the workout and thought to ourselves “hmm, did I push myself too far and injure myself?”

Let us first caveat this post with the following: at Black Tusk Athletics, we always want to ensure that every movement performed by our athletes is executed safely and properly to eliminate the possibility of injury. This includes modify the weight and movement so it is appropriate for the individual. This is paramount to everything else. This is our standard. So when we discuss the topic of “pain” as a result of exercise, we are basing it on the fact that the movements are not grossly misexecuted.

With the above in mind, we’ve all heard buzzwords and phrases like “DOMS” or “no pain, no gain” but do I really need to feel pain to make gains, or who is Dom?

Muscle Soreness and When to be Concerned

A very commonly used term in the fitness industry is DOMS. DOMS is the acronym for Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness. Muscle soreness typically peaks around 24-48 hours post workout. Symptoms can include swelling, tenderness, reduced muscle strength. This is not to be confused with sudden acute pain, which may arise during your workout.

DOMS, more often than not, will occur when you are using muscles in a different capacity than you are used to. DOMS is actually the result of micro trauma in the muscles and surrounding connective tissue. This micro trauma (the tearing of your muscle fibers) will causes inflammation as your body is making adaptations to prepare your muscles for this training again, (ie. building muscle).

Some athletes will wear DOMS as a badge of honor, going as far to say “I’m not even that sore, I must not have worked out hard enough”. The purpose of training and exercise is not to cripple ourselves. If, after three days, you try to do the same exercise and you can’t, you’ve likely gone too far. Soreness is not an accurate indicator of muscle adaptation or growth. There are many factors that influence how soreness is presented and DOMS isn’t the best gauge of how effective your workout was.But on the flip side, we want to be clear that DOMS isn’t a bad thing. Trauma to your muscle fibers is needed so that your body can repair and grow these muscles. When muscle fibers are repaired, they become larger and stronger than before. This is soreness. This is not to be confused with injury.There may be times when you may overexert yourself during a workout. So when should you be concerned? When it comes to injury, more often than not, the injury will elicit immediate acute pain, typically during your workout. This is not something you should ignore. Injuries on the most part will also last over 3 days, whereas the onset of soreness will usually both appear (the day after a workout) and will resolve itself gradually.

At the end of the day DOMS isn’t something to fear, nor it is something to praise. For the long-term, you likely will experience DOMs every now and then but as you build more muscle, your strength and endurance will increase as well.

At Black Tusk Athletics, we pride ourselves in keeping classes small, so we can work with you to minimize occurrences of injury.

After riding the holiday train for the last month, we are now officially into our second week of January. After all the sugar-laded foods, alcohol, copious parties and engagements, the first week of January likely had a bit of a rough landing for most of us. Some of us may still have one foot on the train, not quite ready to leap off and jump back into our regular routine. Hitting the reset button is like getting a fresh start and isn't as daunting as it seems. Make small daily changes and over the course of one week, you’re back to your pre-holiday routine!

Small Change 1: Ridding the kitchen and pantry of the leftover goodies. These are the cookies and chocolates you’ve received as gifts or just snacks that you accumulated over the month of December in preparation for entertaining during the holidays. Many of us will think “well I don’t want to waste it”; having this mindset will always get us into trouble. Remember that it’s just processed food and can be replaced, we don’t need to stockpile it! Get rid of it :)

Small Change 2: Go grocery shopping and shop the perimeter of the market (with the exception of the bakery). The perimeter is where you will find your necessities (your perishables); these are your produce, your meats, your eggs, your dairy (if you consume dairy). Start cooking at home again, know what is going into your meals, which will give way to meal prepping again!

Small Change 3: Hit the gym. First workout after the holidays is always the toughest, ask anyone. Once you get this monkey off your back, things will start feeling better again! We promise.

PROTIP: Make that first reservation for a class and stick to it. If you make a reservation and no show because you are having a hard time getting your butt off the couch, find a workout buddy so you have an accountability partner. We’re all in this together.

Our mantra with respect to setting goals and making changes has always been that small changes and small goals over time amount to big changes and big goals. So that’s it: three small changes and you will be on your way back to your regular routine.

The holidays are nearing full bloom and the spirit of giving is at its strongest. December is a busy month with Christmas parties, get togethers with family and friends, and general holiday cheer. We are so engrossed with generosity of giving not only physical gifts to others, but also our time.

Most of us have experienced the post-holiday blues: that feeling of exhaustion that hits us when the holidays finally wind down and reality sets back in; when the month’s worth of hustle and bustle, treats, eats, and booze comes to an end. We know that we’ve definitely been there. It’s usually around this time that we go from 60 to 0 real quick. After an entire month of giving to others, we feel like we have nothing left to give, not to others, not to ourselves.

We want you all to take a moment to realize during this holiday season that looking after yourself can actually be the best gift you can give to your loved ones. You have permission to care for yourself; to be selfish from time to time, especially during the holidays when stressors and emotions are running high. As we enter into the latter half of December, adopt a mentality of taking care of yourself.

If you’d like a night in alone, say no to that party that you really don’t want to go to. If your routine is going to the gym, make that a priority. If you really just want to spend all of your money on your friends and family, that’s great too, do that! The point is, we should all be doing what we WANT to do, not what we feel we SHOULD do. We shouldn’t have to feel like sacrificing our own happiness (whatever that might be) for others during this time. Take care of your body, take care of your mind and keep the most important person at the forefront of your decision making.